A few kilometres west of Hexham the South and North Tyne have long since joined, and the valley widens into a level green floor of fields, hedges and small woods, with the Wall's ridge just visible to the north. The Red House Roman camp lies in this farmland, about five kilometres from Haydon Bridge, Acomb and Hexham, on the Roman road known as the Stanegate, which ran across the neck of Britain from Carlisle to Corbridge.
The Stanegate is older than the Wall, and for a time it was the frontier itself, a road with forts a day's march apart, and when Hadrian began his great barrier in about 122 AD it stayed in use as the supply line behind it. Camps beside it were built by marching soldiers and used for training, and they are only low banks and ditches in fields today.
The valley has plenty of later history. Corbridge, a little to the east, grew out of a Roman supply town and has a fine Saxon church built partly of Roman stones, as well as a large excavated site with granaries and fountain bases. Aydon Castle, a thirteenth-century fortified manor house, stands on a ridge above the village and is a well-preserved example of the houses built to withstand Scottish raids. The whole region was a border land for centuries, with peel towers in every village.
On the bike, the quiet lanes between Acomb, Fourstones and Haydon Bridge are very pleasant, with gentle bends, stone walls and cattle in the fields. The A69 is the fast road nearby, and the old road along the south side of the river carries less traffic and has more character. In spring the hedges are white with blossom, and in autumn the woods turn golden. Winter brings fog and frost in the valley bottom, so the best riding is after the sun has risen high.
Hexham, seven kilometres away, has everything you need, including filling stations, supermarkets, a fine abbey and a Saturday market that has been held for centuries. Acomb and Haydon Bridge are smaller but have pubs and shops, and the Northumberland pubs are known for hearty, generous food, with Sunday roasts and local ales.